


doctors kiss (it) better

by Arlene0401



Series: Tumblr drabbles and oneshots 2018 [4]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Amputation, Awkward Flirting, Fluff, Hospitals, Injury, Injury Recovery, Kissing, M/M, One Armed Erwin Smith, Pining, Surgeon Eren Yeager, mentions of unspeakable and outdated medical treatments
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-25
Updated: 2018-06-25
Packaged: 2019-05-28 01:08:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,457
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15037334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arlene0401/pseuds/Arlene0401
Summary: The man leaning against the wall next to the hospital’s back entrance held his face into the sun with his eyes closed, so Levi could study him at his leisure.His face was handsome enough, with strong features and a soft, sensuous mouth. Long chestnut hair was tied into a neat ponytail and shone in the sun.He would have looked as appetizing as a cup of hot tea sided by fresh shortbread… if it wasn’t for the blood soaked apron and surgeon’s scrubs.





	doctors kiss (it) better

**Author's Note:**

  * For [alphaofallcats](https://archiveofourown.org/users/alphaofallcats/gifts), [shulkie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shulkie/gifts).



> requested by [alphaofallcats](https://alphaofallcats.tumblr.com) on tumblr with the prompt: "“This place gives me the creeps.”
> 
> I am awfully much obliged to [perksofbeingawaifu](http://perksofbeingawaifu.tumblr.com) for supplying the idea of surgeon!Eren and hc'ing this au with me (in which Grisha Yeager actually shows some basic parenting skills :D

The man leaning against the wall next to the hospital’s back entrance held his face into the sun with his eyes closed, so Levi could study him at his leisure.

His face was handsome enough, with strong features and a soft, sensuous mouth. Long chestnut hair was tied into a neat ponytail and shone in the sun. 

He would have looked as appetizing as a cup of hot tea sided by fresh shortbread… if it wasn’t for the blood soaked apron and surgeon’s scrubs. His hands, however, were immaculately scrubbed clean, as Levi noticed when the man flicked the ashes off the cigarette in his long, slender fingers.

Raising said cigarette to his lips, the man opened his eyes and looked straight at Levi. Feeling caught, Levi averted his gaze and kept walking, suddenly noticing to his chagrin that he had actually fallen behind Hanji while ogling the stranger. He risked another look back at the blood stained apron and shuddered.

_He looks like a butcher._

Hanji and Levi entered the hospital through the main entrance and were immediately led to Erwin’s room. Learning that their commander was still alive was already a relief. While they followed a nurse down a long corridor, his mind’s eye presented the horrible moments again when the abnormal titan had snatched Erwin’s outstretched arm with his jaws and ripped the limb off. They had quickly applied a tourniquet and hoped for the best, but his deathly pale face on the long trek back would haunt Levi for a long time.

Erwin lay in bed, propped up with pillows, and a clean bandage covered his arm stump and chest. Otherwise, his upper body was bare. He was asleep, but it looked peaceful, unlike the pain-riddled unconsciousness of shock and blood loss. Hanji briefly held his hand and touched his forehead, a tear in her eyes that she furtively wiped away. Not wanting to disturb his rest, they pulled up two chairs and talked quietly.

Just as Erwin started to stir, someone knocked on the door and entered. To his surprise, Levi recognised the smoker from the back entrance. Now, he was clad in clean scrubs and carried a couple of patient files. He introduced himself as Dr Jaeger with a firm handshake and, since all chairs were occupied, sat down on the edge of the bed.

The dipping of the mattress prompted Erwin to open his eyes, and he blinked a little and looked around to orientate himself. Dr Jaeger shot him a brilliant smile.

“Commander! I was hoping you would wake up around this time. It’s always hard to tell how long anaesthetics last. I’m Dr Eren Jaeger, your surgeon.”

He then proceeded to explain the surgery he had performed, how he had used the remaining skin to cover the wound, and a lot of nauseating details that Levi didn’t really care to hear. Although, he had to admit, Dr Jaeger’s voice was nice to listen to. All the while, he patted Erwin’s remaining (unclothed, Levi couldn’t help observing) arm reassuringly, and Erwin looked a little starstruck. 

“You were really lucky that someone had enough presence of mind the cleanse the wound thoroughly of any titan saliva. You have no idea how often we have to fight gangrene because of contaminated wounds. Which means amputation.” He chuckled. “They call me ‘Dr Sawdust’ around here.”

“That was Levi,” Erwin replied.

Levi found himself on the receiving end of that dazzling smile and damn, it should come with a health hazard warning. “That was very well done, Captain - you probably saved the Commander’s life.”

Hanji nudged him with an elbow. “Who thought that your preference for cleanliness would pay off like this.”

Levi tried very hard not to find the doctor illegally cute and instead reminded himself of the blood stained, sinister figure from earlier.

Finally, Dr Jaeger examined Erwin (absent-mindedly not letting go of Erwin’s wrist long after he was done checking his pulse) and shooed them out, claiming that his patient needed rest.

On their way out, they heard shrill screams of agony from somewhere in the back of the building, abruptly cut off by a slamming door. Levi’s skin broke out in gooseflesh.

“This place gives me the creeps. Hanji, if I ever get injured, please make sure that these slaughterers don’t get a hold on me. Rather put me out of my misery quickly.”

“Oh, I don’t know. This Dr Jaeger seemed awfully nice and competent. Erwin looked so well - and he is positively _smitten _with the doctor, it seems.”__

__He grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her to face him. “Hanji, I’m serious. Don’t ever, ever put me in this hospital.”_ _

__He turned around, missed the first step of the stairs, tumbled all the way down and landed with his head hitting a metal dustbin._ _

__When Levi came to, he was aching in a dozen places, the worst of all being his head. It pounded like it was split open, and to top it off someone kept prodding and touching it. He groaned and tried to slap the bothersome hands away, but the person warded him off._ _

__“Please keep still, Captain Levi, I’ll be done in a minute.”_ _

__The voice sounded familiar, smooth and deep. Soothing. For a moment, Levi swam in confusion, not being able to recall where he had heard it before._ _

__His eyes flew open._ _

__Dr Jaeger smiled his by now familiar smile. “That was quite a tumble you took, but luckily nothing’s broken. Well, you’ll be terribly bruised, but I venture a guess that you’ve seen worse in your life. The worst is this cut on your forehead, but I’m doing my very best to stitch you up all nice and neat. Wouldn’t do to have this handsome face blemished with a big ugly scar,” he added, more to himself._ _

__He noticed Levi’s startled expression and bit his lip, blushing._ _

__Adorable._ _

__Levi blinked. Where did this suddenly come from? He must have smashed up his head worse than feared._ _

__Dr Jaeger snipped the final thread and wiped away the last remnants of blood. “There you are. As good as new.”_ _

__“Okay. Can I go now?” Levi sat up and swung his legs off the stretcher, only to tip over sideways again, dizzy and nauseous._ _

__“Woah. You’re going nowhere, Captain. You have a concussion, and no way am I sending you home like this.” Dr Jaeger insisted he lay down again and asked a bunch of inane questions - for example who was currently king, what year it was and how old he was - before gently tilting Levi’s head up and examining his pupil reflexes. Levi was acutely aware of the careful, gentle fingers on his face, the thumb almost brushing his lips._ _

__“Hm. Slightly dilated.” He could have sworn to hear amusement._ _

__“Do you flirt with all your patients like this?” Levi blurted out._ _

__“Forgive me for being a little… exhilarated at having the Commander and you, the heroes of my adolescent years and the very reason I became a military surgeon for the Survey Corps, right here, under my care.”_ _

__“What? You’re a surgeon because of us?”_ _

__“Oh, the _surgeon_ part was my father’s doing,” the doctor replied. “He was the famous Dr Grisha Jaeger, the saviour of Shiganshina - you may have heard of him. My childhood dream was to become a scout myself, while my father wanted me to follow his footsteps. But since he knew about reverse psychology, he encouraged my plans, stating how it was much more fitting for me because I wasn’t cut out to become a physician. Of course that only made me want to prove him wrong.” He shook his head with a little laugh. “Failed the exam at my first attempt so spectacularly that everybody told me to give it up, only to ace it the second time. Theory was not my strong side to be honest, but I have a way of instinctual learning, so understanding how a body works and how to act when something goes wrong was relatively easy once I got the hang of it. Plus I straight out refused to fail again. But instead of becoming a practitioner, I applied for the military’s medical service.”_ _

__While listening, Levi found himself relaxing on the hard stretcher and almost dozing off, but much to his disappointment Dr Jaeger got up, apologized for babbling about his life story when Levi needed to rest._ _

__“It’s a bit unorthodox considering your ranks, but would you mind if you share a room with the Commander? I fear we are overstaffed, and I think you would rather room with him than one of the lower ranks. Commander Smith has already said he wouldn’t mind.”_ _

__Levi nodded his agreement, and he was only half aware of the stretcher being rolled down a corridor, then some people helping him change into pyjamas and crawl into a clean bed that smelled of sun-dried sheets and disinfectant._ _

__He was asleep before his head was fully nestled into the pillow._ _

__For a surgeon working in a fully occupied hospital, Dr Jaeger (“Please, call me Eren”) spent an awful lot of time with his favorite patients. Checked and re-checked Erwin’s bandages, ran his fingers up and down the stump in search for any signs of inflammation. Helped him cut and eat his food. Gently cleaned Levi’s wound and sweet talked him into taking his painkillers, calling him a ‘good boy’ when he complied, causing Levi to almost choke on his sip of water. One morning Erwin thoughtfully scratched at his growing beard stubble, asked the nurse for a shaving razor. His attempts at shaving with his left hand let Levi’s blood freeze, but he insisted he had to learn how to cope on his own. Until Dr Jaeger entered and without ado too the razor out of his unresisting hand. Erwin obediently tilted his head this way and that, eyes closed with something close to bliss as Eren expertly took the offending stubble off with slow, precise movements._ _

__Levi thought that shaving wasn’t supposed to look this erotic._ _

__He watched Erwin’s gaze soften, his fingers linger on Eren’s when they shook hands. Felt his pulse speed up when these firm, warm hands cradled his own face to inspect him, and more than once his eyes flitted down to Eren’s lips when they were this close, so soft and inviting._ _

__Enticing._ _

__For someone who only suffered a superficial head wound and a concussion, Levi stayed a surprisingly long time in hospital, and uncomplainingly so. Even when his headaches had subsided Eren advised him to stay one more day “just to be on the safe side”._ _

__“Your pupils still seem dilated, and that concerns me.”_ _

__Levi rolled his eyes and grabbed Eren’s head. “Have you ever considered, Doctor, that the cause of that may be _you_?” He ran the tip of a finger over Eren’s plush bottom lip. “How can someone be around you and not be affected?” He inched a little closer._ _

__Eren tried to pull back. “Captain -”_ _

__“Levi.”_ _

__“Captain… Levi, you are still my patient.”_ _

__“And who would be in the position to change that?”_ _

__Eren said nothing, but this time he didn’t resist the pull of Levi’s hands either._ _

__“Wouldn’t you say I’m sufficiently recovered to be discharged, Doctor?”_ _

__They were breathing the same air now, and out of the corner of his eye Levi could just make out Erwin watching them in amusement._ _

__Silently, he pleaded Eren to say the magic words, because he wasn’t sure he could exist another second without kissing him._ _

__Eren’s eyes were half lidded and his lips just barely brushed over Levi’s as he spoke. “Yes. You are discharged, Cap-”_ _

__The final syllable was muffled by Levi’s mouth pressing against his, just a gentle dab. He wanted to savour the moment, learn the warmth and texture of Eren’s lips. Eren tasted vaguely of cigarettes, but to his surprise he found he didn’t mind. Even though they kept it chaste for now, soft and almost shy kisses, it was intoxicating. Levi felt a heady rush from kissing this man he’d only met a couple of days ago. Eren was so… multi-faceted, a cold blooded surgeon who could sever limbs without as much as batting an eyelid, an adorable albeit awkward flirter, and now he was kissing Levi with all the reverence as if he’d been dreaming of this for years. One of his hands was in Levi’s hair, not minding its state of being unwashed for several days due to the injury, the other caressing his jaw and neck._ _

__Finally they broke off, reluctantly, but they were both acutely aware of the third person in the room. Erwin didn’t show any signs of embarrassment or annoyance, but there was a little dejection in the way his shoulders slumped. Eren glanced his way and back to Levi, and he gave an almost imperceptible nod. They smiled at each other, hands squeezing shortly, and then Eren got up and ambled over to Erwin’s bed._ _

__His voice was warmer, softer than ever. “I am awfully sorry that you are still my patient, Commander, and will remain in this hospital for quite some time.” He tapped Erwin’s chin gently to make him look up. “But once you’re healed… and if you’re not opposed… I would very much like to kiss you too.”_ _

__Erwin reached up and closed his fingers around Eren’s hand. He guided it to his lips and kissed the inside of Eren’s wrist. “Since it’s going to be a long time, would you mind humoring an old veteran and giving me just a little taste?”_ _

__Levi groaned inwardly, but Eren seemed to find the approach charming enough. He leaned forward to give Erwin a teasing peck before kissing him fully. Levi watched in fascination how they melted against each other and got lost in the sensation._ _

__Not for very long, however, before Eren pulled away and smoothed down his shirt. He tried to regain his professional composure, but the blush on his face he couldn’t hide._ _

__“Be a good patient, Erwin, and I’ll be able to send you home soon.” He smiled brightly and turned to Levi. “Dr Arlert will take your stitches out if you come back here in a couple of days. But I hope to see you again much, much sooner.”_ _

__He couldn’t refrain from briefly touching both of them, then rushed out, giddy as a schoolboy._ _

__Erwin said: “And you thought him a butcher who takes apart bodies in the basement.”_ _

__Levi shrugged. “Well, first impressions can be wrong. And he _did_ pierce my heart, after all. If you ask me, his cuteness is more dangerous to the public than any bone saw could ever be.”_ _


End file.
